Civ IV earth 18 civ

[karlmartell]

Hi,

I am new to this forum, so correct me if I have posted this in the wrong place.

Quick question:

The regular earth 18 civ for Civ IV. Is there an easy way to add civs, i.e. making it a 20 civ or 21 civ?

Thx in advance.

 

[G-Max]

Yes. You have to know what you're doing, but it's as simple as downloading a .dll file, putting it in the right place, and then cracking the scenario open in Notepad and making some appropriate changes.

I've uploaded an Earth29civs map/mod, which includes not just a lot more civs, but also a new Israeli civ and some miscellaneous rules changes (for example, spearmen and pikemen can now be given city garrison instead of city raider, and Forges now require Coal in order to give the +25% and 1 ). I also tacked on an Earth30civs map for players who didn't feel that Europe was crowded enough.

 

[Choeimok]

Look for the Custom Earth 2 map script. It's a very similar map to Earth 18 (some differences in resource distribution and Europe is bigger), but with selectable civs. For more than 18 civs you need the 40 civs mod.

 

[kochman]

Yes. You have to know what you're doing, but it's as simple as downloading a .dll file, putting it in the right place, and then cracking the scenario open in Notepad and making some appropriate changes.

I've uploaded an Earth29civs map/mod, which includes not just a lot more civs, but also a new Israeli civ and some miscellaneous rules changes (for example, spearmen and pikemen can now be given city garrison instead of city raider, and Forges now require Coal in order to give the +25% and 1 ). I also tacked on an Earth30civs map for players who didn't feel that Europe was crowded enough.

Why would you make forges require coal?
Forges were run off of wood burning fires for centuries, were they not?

 

[G-Max]

1) Coal, apparently, makes a much better fuel than wood. You'll find very few wood-powered forges these days.
2) I had to find a use for early-game coal. It's pretty stupid to reveal something from turn 1 and not have a use for it until the Industrial era.

 

[Archon_Wing]

Coal is revealed with steam power; not at the beginning, and you need it to build railroads (one tech down)

 

[MeatUnit2]

Early Iron Age forges were fired with charcoal (not coal). Most of central Europe was deforested to make charcoal, which was also used for heating. Charcoal was the major "energy source" through the seventeenth century in Europe. It wasn't until the eighteenth century that coal was converted to coke for iron forging, at a time roughly corresponding to the advent of the Industrial Age.

My 2¢

 

[G-Max]

Coal is revealed with steam power; not at the beginning, and you need it to build railroads (one tech down)

Did you miss the part where it's a mod?

In my mod, all resources except aluminum and uranium are visible from the start. Oil wells can be built with the discovery of Machinery, whaling boats become available with Hunting, all archery units upgrade to muskets instead of rifles, cavalry upgrade to tanks instead of helicopters, Machine Guns aren't siege units, Grenadiers and Marines have City Raider instead of City Garrison, and over nine thousand other things have been tweaked.

Early Iron Age forges were fired with charcoal (not coal). Most of central Europe was deforested to make charcoal, which was also used for heating. Charcoal was the major "energy source" through the seventeenth century in Europe. It wasn't until the eighteenth century that coal was converted to coke for iron forging, at a time roughly corresponding to the advent of the Industrial Age.

My 2¢

Coal, charcoal... who cares? Coal was known to ancient people, and it makes good fuel for forges.

 

[jmcbryde]

Look for the Custom Earth 2 map script. It's a very similar map to Earth 18 (some differences in resource distribution and Europe is bigger), but with selectable civs. For more than 18 civs you need the 40 civs mod.

On the Earth 2 map, will all the civs spawn in the old world or will there be some in the new world as well?

 

[MeatUnit2]

Coal, charcoal... who cares? Coal was known to ancient people, and it makes good fuel for forges.

Coal is fine for forges but is particularly bad for smelting iron due to the sulfur content, as well as other impurities, which contaminates the iron and makes it weak. Until the process for coking coal was invented charcoal was used to make strong iron and steel.

Burning coal also produces particularly noxious gases and smoke. It's unsuitable for cooking or brewing, where charcoal works well.

As long as the supply of wood was high and the demand for iron was relatively low charcoal was used. As demand for iron increased and deforestation made charcoal more costly alternatives were sought. Necessity is the mother of invention. The process for coking coal was discovered, a process which is dependent on other technologies that were not available to earlier civilizations.

 

[G-Max]

Coal is fine for forges but is particularly bad for smelting iron due to the sulfur content, as well as other impurities, which contaminates the iron and makes it weak. Until the process for coking coal was invented charcoal was used to make strong iron and steel.

What is the relevance of this? Iron and coal have nothing to do with each other in this game.

Burning coal also produces particularly noxious gases and smoke. It's unsuitable for cooking or brewing, where charcoal works well.

Again, what's the relevance? Food and coal have nothing to do with each other in this game.

 

[kochman]

Forges were used to forge... iron... back in the day.

 

[MeatUnit2]

What is the relevance of this? Iron and coal have nothing to do with each other in this game.



Again, what's the relevance? Food and coal have nothing to do with each other in this game.

My comment was in response to Kochman's question.

Why would you make forges require coal?
Forges were run off of wood burning fires for centuries, were they not?

This is a valid question given that you (G-Max) have decided to make coal a prerequisite to gaining the forge bonus in your mod.

The correct answer is that forges and smelters used charcoal until the 18th century. They did not use coal, for the reasons I have previously stated, along with some other observations about charcoal vs. coal.

Your decision to make coal a prerequisite for the Forge bonus is not justified by historical fact. I know a lot more about the history of smelting and forging than you do, so I answered his question correctly when I saw that you had not.

Some people who develop mods make changes in the tech tree, adding intermediate steps and conditions, in order to reflect historical progress more accurately. Some people like to add fairies and trolls to their mods. That's their choice.

I hope I have answered your questions "Who cares" and "What is the relevance" to your satisfaction.

This is a general discussion thread, so settle down Francis.